Cairo - A Saudi fighter plane was hit by a technical problem and its two pilots ejected over the Red Sea on Friday, state media said, adding that the pair had been returned to the country with American help.

“A plane of the F-15S type was stricken by a technical fault yesterday evening over the Red Sea and the two pilots were forced to use their rescue seats,” state news agency WAS quoted a defense ministry official saying.

“Praise be to God, the pilots were rescued in coordination with the American side, and the two pilots are in good health and high spirits,” the official said.

Foreign secy says defence team to visit KSA in couple of days
ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has assured all-out support to Saudi Arabia in the operation ‘determination storm’ reiterating that any threat to the territorial integrity of the kingdom would evoke strong response from Pakistan.

In his telephonic conversation with Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Premier Sharif discussed recent developments in the region with specific reference to the escalation regarding the ongoing military operation against rebels in Yemen, reports Saudi Press Agency.
However, the media section here at Prime Minister’s House was completely silent about the telephonic contact.

Reportedly the contact was made on Saturday wherein Premier Sharif extended full support for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) in the operation ‘determination storm’ placing “all potentials of the Pakistan Army at the disposal of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia”.
King Salman thanked the Nawaz Sharif for his feelings and stressed on the depth of relations between the two countries, the report said.

In another development Prime Minister himself talked to Pakistan Ambassador in Yemen and directed him to take all possible measures to ensure safety and security of each and every member of Pakistani community till their evacuation from the war-torn country.

Speaking at a hurriedly-convened news conference on Saturday night, Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhry said Pakistan was ‘very much’ concerned over what is happening in Yemen which he said was posing threat to the territorial integrity of Saudi Arabia.

He said Pakistan would extend all out support to Saudi Arabia including sending troops in wake of the turmoil in Yemen to protect the land of the two Holy Mosques, adding no Muslim would tolerate any aggression against kingdom housing two holiest places of Islam.

Denying media reports that Pakistan has already sent its fighter jets which are taking part in the ongoing operation in Yemen, the secretary said any decision to become part of the war will be taken after visit of Pakistan’s high level delegation to Riyadh, due in a couple of days.
He further said that as per the statement of the Defence Minister in National Assembly, the parliament would also be taken into confidence on any such decision.

“The fact is that our leadership is in constant contact with the Saudi leadership and a high level delegation will be visiting Riyadh in the next 24 to 48 hours to assess the situation”, he said.
He said the delegation will comprise Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, PM Adviser on National Security and Foreign Affairs Satraj Aziz and representatives of the armed forces.

Reiterating Pakistan’s commitment to the security and territorial integrity of Saudi Arabia, as pledged by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to Saudi King during telephonic conversation earlier in the day, he said the prime minister conveyed to the king that security and protection of the Saudi territorial integrity was very important for Pakistan and that Islamabad is ready to send its troops if the situation turns against the Saudi integrity.

But he stated that, at present, the top priority of the government is to ensure safe exit of the stranded Pakistanis from the war-torn Yemen for which the government is in contact with all the neighbouring countries of Yemen including Saudi Arabia.
The foreign secretary said that a special PIA plane is ready to leave for Yemen to bring back the first batch of Pakistanis and a convoy of 600 Pakistanis was currently on their way to Hudaidah form where they will be airlifted to Pakistan.

He pointed out that since Saudi Arabia has declared a no-fly zone and Pakistan is in contact with Saudi authorities to ensure safe air route for the PIA fights.
He said that Pakistan defence minister also spoke with his Saudi counterpart and urged to cooperate in evacuation of the Pakistanis.
“At present we are waiting for the turmoil to subside so that we could be able to safely evacuate Pakistani people”, he said.

Mr Chaudhary said that a Pakistan Navy ship will also leave for Yemen on Sunday to take part in the evacuation operation while another ship will be leaving on Monday.
Currently, there are around 3,000 Pakistanis residing in Yemen, of which around 1,000 are trying to leave the country and come back to Pakistan, he added.
Aizaz Chaudhry said that Pakistan is also in contact with Oman to ensure evacuation of some Pakistanis to that country.
He said that following the worsening situation in Yemen, the Pakistani embassy had already advised its citizens to think about leaving the country.

Just a little correction in the img that pakistan is not providing any air power.

Click to expand...

Oh damn, it started before Egypt could get its Rafales
BTW is this really a war against Rebels? When the IS was at forefront, I did not see these many countries mobilize so fast, even against IS Sudan and Morocco are not in that war.

So, this is not a war against Rebels who toppled a legitimate govt, because we have the same situation in Iraq and few of these countries like Pakistan, Egypt, Sudan, Morocco to name a few are not in that alliance against IS. This seems to be more or less like the Sunni powered countries ganging up against Shia Rebels.

If this alliance continues in a way, that is threat for Iran as well as Israel but that might not be the case as both these countries have nuclear weapons, not something that the other countries in the group can afford to be hit with.

ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has assured all-out support to Saudi Arabia in the operation ‘determination storm’ reiterating that any threat to the territorial integrity of the kingdom would evoke strong response from Pakistan.

In his telephonic conversation with Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Premier Sharif discussed recent developments in the region with specific reference to the escalation regarding the ongoing military operation against rebels in Yemen, reports Saudi Press Agency.
However, the media section here at Prime Minister’s House was completely silent about the telephonic contact.

Reportedly the contact was made on Saturday wherein Premier Sharif extended full support for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) in the operation ‘determination storm’ placing “all potentials of the Pakistan Army at the disposal of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia”.
King Salman thanked the Nawaz Sharif for his feelings and stressed on the depth of relations between the two countries, the report said.

In another development Prime Minister himself talked to Pakistan Ambassador in Yemen and directed him to take all possible measures to ensure safety and security of each and every member of Pakistani community till their evacuation from the war-torn country.

Speaking at a hurriedly-convened news conference on Saturday night, Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhry said Pakistan was ‘very much’ concerned over what is happening in Yemen which he said was posing threat to the territorial integrity of Saudi Arabia.

He said Pakistan would extend all out support to Saudi Arabia including sending troops in wake of the turmoil in Yemen to protect the land of the two Holy Mosques, adding no Muslim would tolerate any aggression against kingdom housing two holiest places of Islam.

Denying media reports that Pakistan has already sent its fighter jets which are taking part in the ongoing operation in Yemen, the secretary said any decision to become part of the war will be taken after visit of Pakistan’s high level delegation to Riyadh, due in a couple of days.
He further said that as per the statement of the Defence Minister in National Assembly, the parliament would also be taken into confidence on any such decision.

“The fact is that our leadership is in constant contact with the Saudi leadership and a high level delegation will be visiting Riyadh in the next 24 to 48 hours to assess the situation”, he said.
He said the delegation will comprise Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, PM Adviser on National Security and Foreign Affairs Satraj Aziz and representatives of the armed forces.

Reiterating Pakistan’s commitment to the security and territorial integrity of Saudi Arabia, as pledged by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to Saudi King during telephonic conversation earlier in the day, he said the prime minister conveyed to the king that security and protection of the Saudi territorial integrity was very important for Pakistan and that Islamabad is ready to send its troops if the situation turns against the Saudi integrity.

But he stated that, at present, the top priority of the government is to ensure safe exit of the stranded Pakistanis from the war-torn Yemen for which the government is in contact with all the neighbouring countries of Yemen including Saudi Arabia.
The foreign secretary said that a special PIA plane is ready to leave for Yemen to bring back the first batch of Pakistanis and a convoy of 600 Pakistanis was currently on their way to Hudaidah form where they will be airlifted to Pakistan.

He pointed out that since Saudi Arabia has declared a no-fly zone and Pakistan is in contact with Saudi authorities to ensure safe air route for the PIA fights.
He said that Pakistan defence minister also spoke with his Saudi counterpart and urged to cooperate in evacuation of the Pakistanis.
“At present we are waiting for the turmoil to subside so that we could be able to safely evacuate Pakistani people”, he said.

Mr Chaudhary said that a Pakistan Navy ship will also leave for Yemen on Sunday to take part in the evacuation operation while another ship will be leaving on Monday.
Currently, there are around 3,000 Pakistanis residing in Yemen, of which around 1,000 are trying to leave the country and come back to Pakistan, he added.
Aizaz Chaudhry said that Pakistan is also in contact with Oman to ensure evacuation of some Pakistanis to that country.
He said that following the worsening situation in Yemen, the Pakistani embassy had already advised its citizens to think about leaving the country.

As I see this is problem in Yemen and the rebels are moving South toward ADEN, there is no threat to Saudi Arabia as yet,
BTW where were the B@lls of Pakistan when IS threatened to conquer the two holy cities. Pakistan in their statement did say that and I quote. "Pakistan would extend all out support to Saudi Arabia including sending troops in wake of the turmoil in Yemen to protect the land of the two Holy Mosques, adding no Muslim would tolerate any aggression against kingdom housing two holiest places of Islam."

So it seems that these are countries having strong Sunni influence ganging up against Shias.

UN envoy warns: Yemen is being pushed 'to the edge of civil war'
The Yemeni foreign minister is asking several Gulf Arab neighbors for military intervention to stop territorial advances by Houthi fighters in his embattled country, after the U.N. special envoy for Yemen warned the U.N. Security Council that events appear to be leading the country "to the edge of civil war."

"We have expressed to the Gulf Cooperation Council, the United Nations as well as the international community that there should be a no-fly zone, and the use of military aircraft should be prevented at the airports controlled by the Houthis," Yaseen told the al-Sharq al-Awsat newspaper, Reuters reported.

Gulf Cooperation Council members include Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Qatar and Bahrain.

Yemen crisis : With no airstrips, 3,700 Indians to be evacuated via Djibouti
Published March 28, 2015
SOURCE: EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE

The government is planning to evacuate 3,700-odd Indians in Yemen via Djibouti — on the southern side of Gulf of Aden — in the light of absence of airstrips in the war-torn nation.Sources told The Indian Express that a “broad plan” discussed at a joint meeting involving representatives of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), defence and other concerned agencies suggested transporting the Indian community to Djibouti through the Gulf of Aden and then flying them to Mumbai.
An option to send the national carrier instead of an Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft is also being mulled given the “signal” that a service aircraft landing in the region may send. While Indian Air Force (IAF) as well as Navy have been consulted, neither of the two agencies have yet received any instructions to proceed.

“The challenge in Yemen is that no airstrip is available for landing. Thus, the closest airstrip is Djibouti on the southern side of Gulf of Aden. Indian citizens are thus likely to be brought to Djibouti via Gulf of Aden and then flown to Mumbai,” said a source.

While Sana’a-the Yemeni capital, has nearly 3,000 Indians-mostly nurses, the southern port and Yemen’s second largest town Aden has close to 700 Indians.

“In light of war, a civilian aircraft carrying out the operation is a more viable option that an IAF plane landing,” a source said adding however that “no concrete plan has been finalised yet.”

While the IAF has been consulted-officials declined to comment as to whether any aircraft has been kept in a state of readiness. Navy officials added that the readiness state of the naval vessels is as usual and those operating in Arabian sea “are in a position to be diverted to Gulf of Aden on a call.”

While Saudi-led forces have been striking the Houthi rebels in Yemen since Thursday morning, the Indian embassy in Yemen has advised Indian nationals to “leave” Yemen.

Viewing war as an engineering problem focuses on technology (which benefits contractors) and destructive physical effects, but this ideology ignores and is offset by the fundamental truth of war: Machines don’t fight wars, people do, and they use their minds. Our technology’s physical effects can be — and often are — offset or mitigated by our opponent’s mental counters or initiatives, reflecting both his adaptability and unpredictability, and his moral strengths, like resolve and the will to resist. Combat history has proven over and over that mental and moral effects can offset physical effects, for example, when the destruction of ball bearing factories did not have its predicted effects in WWII, when bicycles carrying 600 pounds of supplies were used to by pass destroyed bridges on the Ho Chi Minh Trail, and when the Serbs used cheap microwave ovens to fool expensive anti-radiation missiles in Kosovo. And as Cockburn shows, this has proven true again in the ongoing war on terror, and its mirror image, the war on drugs.
Any one who doubts that this critique applies to drones used in a counter-terror strategy should be asked to explain the collapse in Yemen — a place where drones reached their apotheosis as the centerpiece of American counter-terror strategy.

Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya an award-winning author and geopolitical analyst, who is also a member of the Scientific Committee of Geopolitica, spoke to Sputnik about the Saudi led coalition in Yemen.
Nazemroaya said that all military experts around the world including American ones and the ones in the Middle East agreed that airstrikes are never enough to defeat any force.

He also mentioned Libya saying that in that country airstrikes were not enough either. “You need operations on the ground”.

“The Saudis would be very foolish to embark on the ground operations. It will be their Vietnam in the Middle East, in the Arabian Peninsula. I can categorically tell you that airstrikes are not enough to stop any military action on the ground.”

He said that in fact Houthis have basically taken over Aden in the south and because of that he feels that Saudis are going to try and expand the war and bring in troops from Pakistan or mercenaries from other parts of the world.

“They might come under the flag of Saudi Arabia but they could be mercenaries and recruits from other parts of the world.”

He further elaborated, “They are pushing for the Egyptians to get involved. So alongside Saudi Arabia we have some countries that are nominally involved, their involvement is a token to make this look like a Pan-Arab operation, like it has a wider international support.”

He spoke about how Saudi Arabia will push to expand the coalition to get troops from other places. It is unknown whether there will be private security contractors or their own, but the coalition will likely expand.
He also said that he is quite certain that Saudi Arabia will push the Egyptians to get troops into Yemen, which according to him, would be a disaster because Egypt in the past did send troops to Yemen decades ago and it proved to be a disaster.

“It is going to be a disaster for Saudi Arabia. Back in 2009 and 2010 they invaded Yemen to fight Houthi and they lost. Houthi started taking over parts of Saudi Arabia.”

Southern Saudi villages were actually taken over by the Houthi. So if they want to repeat a failed policy they are going to send troops on the ground into Yemen.”
“Any Arab county that gets involved in Yemen is going to create domestic instability, regional instability and ultimately it will hurt Saudi Arabia. It does not have the military capabilities to invade and occupy Yemen. Hence, they will push to broaden the war and get other actors involved. There are already others involved.”

Talking about other members he said that the US is already a member, there have been reports that Israelis have been helping them in the bombings.

“In fact in the past Saudi Arabia and Israel had an alliance where the Israelis were providing arms to the Saudis to provide to the Royalists in the northern Yemen during the Cold War, to create pressure on southern Yemen which at that time was allied to Moscow during the Cold War. So I mean there are broader interests involved,” Nazemroaya said.

At the end it is the ordinary people who get killed in this Shia / Sunni war for dominance...
Let us all think of those small children and their helpless mothers and their anguish on being witness to the death, damage and destruction that is going on in whatever the name it might be.......
Terrible, no land completely recovers from the ravages of war..nor the people of that land